Billy Joel

WASHINGTON — Billy Joel is feeling the love again in the nation’s capital as he receives a national pop music prize one year after the “Piano Man” was awarded the Kennedy Center Honors.

The Library of Congress today is honoring the singer and songwriter behind “New York State of Mind,” “Allentown,” “Uptown Girl” and numerous other hits with the Gershwin Prize for Popular Music. The lifetime achievement award is named for the songwriting duo of George and Ira Gershwin.

The 65-year-old Joel was to perform tonight in a concert near the White House along with Tony Bennett, Gavin DeGraw, LeAnn Rimes, John Mellencamp, Natalie Maines, Kevin Spacey and other entertainers. The show will be broadcast Jan. 2 on PBS stations.

At a luncheon in his honor Tuesday, Joel said he was thinking about his mother, Rosalind Joel, who died this year.

“I keep seeing this through her eyes now,” he said. “She would have just gotten such a kick out of this.”

Joel’s father was an accomplished classical pianist who left the family when Joel was 8, and his mother struggled to support Joel and his sister on New York’s Long Island. In high school, Joel played at a piano bar to help support his family.

Clive Davis signed Joel to a deal with Columbia Records in 1973, and “Piano Man” was his debut album, inspired by his real-life experiences.